INTERVIEW BY TRASK COLBY AND AKIRA OKAZAKI
What’s the craziest thing that has happened on tour so far?
Our bass player got tazed twice by the cops, and he started spitting in the cops face. He had to get sent to the emergency room to get his stomach pumped. They put a fuckin’ [catheder] down his pee hole.
What’s one question you hate being asked?
I don’t really hate any questions, but this one guy kept wanting me to bash my ex-wife and bash The Get Up Kids and shit. That wasn’t cool.
In your last show, the lead singer of From Autumn To Ashes screamed for you. Do you normally get someone else to scream on the album?
I do [the screaming], but he was at that last show, so we said, "Hey, why not." That’s why The Full Effect is never the same band. There are always friends in different bands who aren’t doing shit, so we just have them come hang out and get dressed up. Once you start doing it, you get used to it. New Found Glory was the Full Effect for the European and Australian tours.
Did you go from drums to keys or from keys to drums, and why?
I’ve been a pianist since I was 7, and I’ve been playing drums since I was 12. I went to school for it.
Who is Brandy from “Brandy’s Birthday Song”?
It was my friend Brandy, and it was her 21st birthday. Her boyfriend was being a fucking cock sucker, and he wouldn’t take her out for her 21st birthday. So, I wrote that song that day. I was like, ‘Hey, here’s your present. Happy birthday,’ and she said, ‘This better be on your fuckin’ record.’ So “now Brandy’s Birthday Song” is on the record.
Do you still talk to the drunk girl from The Get Up Kids shows?
Yes, I do. Her name’s Amy Camp. She lives in Bermingham, Alabama. She’s best friends with Andy from Hot Rod Circuit’s wife.
Who’s screaming in “Props To The Queen Of Pop”?
That’s me. Hahaha.
What do you listen to?
I haven’t listened to music in a while. We’re just doing it so much everyday. When we are in the Reggie van, we fuckin’ listen to metal - like Iron Maiden and stuff. Just cause it’s fun. But I don’t know; I listened to Quick Sand Slip the other day. That was about the last record I’ve heard. Then I listened to them play.
Do you listen to any rap?
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I like old school. Tribe Called Quest. Early stuff. E.D.M.D. Shit like that.
Any techno? Cause you have some electronic influence in your songs. Yeah. I never know what it is, though, since it’s in clubs. In college, my girlfriend was really into dance music. She would smoke pot and turn our living room into a disco.
Not many bands can have a handful of alter-egos ranging from Finnish death rockers to British synth-poppers, but Reggie and the Full Effect has mastered the art of keeping things comical without losing their credibility. Headed by the James Dewees, keyboardist for the now-deceased The Get Up Kids, Reggie and the Full Effect is probably the only band who has consistently wowed their audiences by performing in miscellaneous costumes and speaking with foreign accents. We spoke with the mastermind of the new album, Songs Not To Get Married To.
What’s the craziest thing that has happened on tour so far?
Our bass player got tazed twice by the cops, and he started spitting in the cops face. He had to get sent to the emergency room to get his stomach pumped. They put a fuckin’ [catheder] down his pee hole.
What’s one question you hate being asked?
I don’t really hate any questions, but this one guy kept wanting me to bash my ex-wife and bash The Get Up Kids and shit. That wasn’t cool.
In your last show, the lead singer of From Autumn To Ashes screamed for you. Do you normally get someone else to scream on the album?
I do [the screaming], but he was at that last show, so we said, "Hey, why not." That’s why The Full Effect is never the same band. There are always friends in different bands who aren’t doing shit, so we just have them come hang out and get dressed up. Once you start doing it, you get used to it. New Found Glory was the Full Effect for the European and Australian tours.
Did you go from drums to keys or from keys to drums, and why?
I’ve been a pianist since I was 7, and I’ve been playing drums since I was 12. I went to school for it.
Who is Brandy from “Brandy’s Birthday Song”?
It was my friend Brandy, and it was her 21st birthday. Her boyfriend was being a fucking cock sucker, and he wouldn’t take her out for her 21st birthday. So, I wrote that song that day. I was like, ‘Hey, here’s your present. Happy birthday,’ and she said, ‘This better be on your fuckin’ record.’ So “now Brandy’s Birthday Song” is on the record.
Do you still talk to the drunk girl from The Get Up Kids shows?
Yes, I do. Her name’s Amy Camp. She lives in Bermingham, Alabama. She’s best friends with Andy from Hot Rod Circuit’s wife.
Who’s screaming in “Props To The Queen Of Pop”?
That’s me. Hahaha.
What do you listen to?
I haven’t listened to music in a while. We’re just doing it so much everyday. When we are in the Reggie van, we fuckin’ listen to metal - like Iron Maiden and stuff. Just cause it’s fun. But I don’t know; I listened to Quick Sand Slip the other day. That was about the last record I’ve heard. Then I listened to them play.
Do you listen to any rap?
Yeah, yeah, yeah. I like old school. Tribe Called Quest. Early stuff. E.D.M.D. Shit like that.
Any techno? Cause you have some electronic influence in your songs. Yeah. I never know what it is, though, since it’s in clubs. In college, my girlfriend was really into dance music. She would smoke pot and turn our living room into a disco.